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Apr 28, 2018

Modern yoga has been fraught with stories of charismatic male yoga teachers who promoted their teachings as spiritually pure and later abused, or otherwise took advantage of, students who believed their mentors were gurus or saints. In 1910, an eccentric American yogi named Pierre Bernard (a.k.a. “The Omnipotent Oom”) was tried for having “inveigled and enticed” one woman into sexual relations—the charges were later dropped, and the incident ultimately brought him infamy. Decades later, in 1983, Swami Muktananda was the subject of an article that chronicled sexual activities he was alleged to have had with young female students; a New Yorker story later reported that at least 100 people believed the allegations to be true but were afraid of being ostracized by the community. That same decade, Yogi Bhajan’s 3HO Foundation, commonly called the “Happy, Healthy, and Holy Organization,” settled several assault lawsuits against its leader, including one case of rape and confinement brought by a woman who entered his circle at age eleven.

In 1991, Swami Satchidananda, who opened Woodstock by leading the crowd in a chant of “Hari Om,” was the focus of protest after allegations of sexual misconduct against female students surfaced; he was never charged and died a decade after the allegations were brought forward. In 1994, “Meditation in Motion” innovator Amrit Desai was removed as spiritual director of the Kripalu Center in western Massachusetts over allegations of abuse of authority and sexual misconduct. That same year, a student sued another prominent yoga guru, Swami Rama, for sexual misconduct; after his death, a jury awarded her almost $2 million, in 1997.

It goes on. In 2012, John Friend, who is a student of both Swami Muktananda and [Krishna Pattabhi] Jois’s main rival, B. K. S. Iyengar, stepped down from his All-American Anusara Yoga brand after allegations surfaced that he had been sleeping with his female students—renewing a conversation within the yoga community about power dynamics and ethical guidelines. In 2016, “hot yoga” pioneer Bikram Choudhury abandoned a fleet of luxury cars and fled his home in California, facing $6.5 million in damages owed in a sexual-harassment lawsuit; a judge later issued a warrant. Separately, Choudhury is facing six lawsuits alleging sexual assault and sexual harassment. (His current whereabouts are unknown, and there is still a warrant out for his arrest.)

Apr 24, 2018

Keith Raniere may be discovering that there's a downside to following the Scientology model of recruiting celebrities into your cult. For whatever credibility and popularity they may initially bring to your organization, if things go pear-shaped, fame becomes infamy. A few weeks ago, the NXIVM founder was extradited from Mexico on sex trafficking and other charges. There was a flurry of news coverage, as noted here. But when "Smallville" star Allison Mack was arrested on Friday, a media firestorm ensued.

This is not the first time Raniere's cultivation of the rich and famous has backfired. It may be what put him on the road to ruin. India Oxenberg, an aspiring actress from a royal bloodline, must have seemed like a real get, until her much more famous mother Catherine Oxenberg went public. Her plea for her daughter's safety was covered by the New York Times, People, Megyn Kelly TODAY, and 20/20. And suddenly that "branding cult" was water cooler talk.

The unflinching, in-depth coverage in the media also forced New York authorities to begin taking complaints seriously, that they had previously dismissed as "consensual." Roughly six months later, NXIVM's most famous member is facing 15 years to life and so is Keith Raniere.

Previous to this graphic, public outing, Raniere's organization had been chugging along pretty quietly in Albany, making millions, and silencing former members with lawsuits and intimidation tactics, thanks to the very deep pockets of Seagram's heiresses Clare and Sara Bronfman. Although their wealth and social position had also brought him a spate of bad press. But suing your victims into silence and bankruptcy is a less effective tactic when some of them are famous and well-heeled, something Scientology is learning the hard way with its futile attacks on Leah Remini.

Traditionally shamans are activists. It is the role of the shaman to see where the people have lapsed in their ways for living well. Working with spirit the shaman proactively guides the necessary learning-from-mistakes and collective movement of the people forward to re-establish good relationship with all living things. Shamanic work has always been this work of transformation and rebalancing. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she explores this responsibility and challenge for contemporary practitioners. It remains our role and our responsibility to take action to manifest needed changes for the good of all living things, but how do we do that in our real world, real time?

Apr 17, 2018

We all experience stuckness at some point in life and there is an art to getting out of it. It begins with changing our chemistry, literally so that we can step out of our habit of being who we are. The next step is to have the courage and cunning to identify that thing we are doing that is too "normal" or "ordinary" to bother to see anymore. In the deeper "why" of that particular blindness is the vein of gold. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, this week as she explores how we find that vein of gold, the untapped resource that allows us to unfold the origami of our particular stuckness. In the resulting intimacy with self, we become the person who can access the latent power in our mess and redirect it into living our deeper purpose.

Apr 10, 2018

On the Ides of March, Tony Robbins did one of his pricey "Unleash the Power Within" events in San Jose. What he unleashed instead was a firestorm. Right after the event, video surfaced of Robbins mansplaining the perils of the #metoo movement to a sex abuse survivor. It quickly disappeared, most likely quashed by his team. Their damage control effort seemed to be working... until it wasn't.

Late last week I noticed that the video had resurfaced. The original footage is taken from a distance and it's a little hard to make out, but a YouTube version is found here. A cleaner, edited version was
posted to Facebook here.

On Saturday Tarana Burke's scathing response to the video was published on the Huffington Post. In under 24 hours, after weeks of trying to bury it, Robbins finally addressed the incident publicly and issued an apology — something he swore in profane terms he would not do, during the altercation. (I think it bears mentioning that Robbins has enjoyed a lot of positive coverage on the Huffington Post, over the years, and a very friendly relationship with founder Ariana Huffington.)

“My comments failed to reflect the respect I have for everything Tarana Burke and the #MeToo movement has achieved,” Robbins said in the statement. “I apologize for suggesting anything other than my profound admiration for the #MeToo movement.”

The wisdom of the body is an extremely complex system that translates and integrates multiple languages, including the language of your physical energy, emotions, felt-sense, and intuition into a language that can be interpreted by the mind. You gain access all of this information through your internal energy body only if you can keep it from being overrun by emotional patterns and limiting stories from your past. Join us this week as host and shaman, Christina Pratt, explores the value in the regular practice and cultivation of Energy Body Mastery. There is more to your energy body than our trigger-warning culture leads you to believe. Anyone can gain the tools and practices to release stress and anxiety at their root, to disentangle from messy, complex relationships, and to redirect your energy into activities you value and enjoy.

Apr 3, 2018

Wind is an invisible force of nature that leaves an indelible mark on time and space. In ancient times the winds influenced our lives and showed us the path to success and happiness. The spirit of Wind has a rich mythology and diverse cultural significance that has been lost in modern times. This week Renee Baribeau, a long time desert resident, a practical shaman, and coach joins us to talk about her new book titled “Winds of Spirit, Ancient Wisdom Tools for Navigating Relationships, Health, and the Divine.” Join Renee and host, Christina Pratt, as they explore ancient shamanic secrets of the wind. Learn how the wind can be used to navigate the pathways of life, to connect with your true inner self (the spiritual magnetic north), and use your body to restore harmony and balance, heal the body, and inspire creativity.

This week's guest:
Renee Baribeau

Renee Baribeau is a Hay House author of Winds of Spirit: Ancient Wisdom Tools for Navigating Relationships, Health, and the Divine. She is a wind whistler, soul coach, inspirational speaker, and workshop leader, known and respected for her down-to-earth approach.

As a writer, Renee is a featured contributing blogger for Elephant Journal. Renee has also contributed chapters to the anthologies Pearls of Wisdom: 30 Inspirational Ideas to Live Your Best Life Now (Hierophant Publishing, 2012) and The Five Principles of Everything (Five Birds Publishing, 2012). She makes her home in the California Desert and Whidbey Island.

Renee, a former chef, opened Brown Bagger’s, the first farm-to-table restaurant in Central New York in 1987. In 2005, she established the Desert Holistic Network in Palm Desert, California, an online regional resource directory. Renee served as the Resident Shaman at We Care Spa in Desert Hot Springs. Since 2013, she has worked for Foundations Recovery Network, a national system of residential treatment facilities.

"Do you not know, Asclepius, that Egypt is an image of heaven, or, to speak more exactly, in Egypt all the operations of the powers which rule and work in heaven have been transferred to earth below? Nay, it should rather be said that the whole Kosmos dwells in this our land as in its sanctuary." - from the Hermetica